Meeting with Students - I never thought too much about office hours and locations until the this weeks reading. I strongly recommend meeting in the departmental office rather than a coffee shop or other similar location. I feel this causes some possible boundary issues and might even lead to uncomfortable situations. I feel in this day and age that a professor needs to be very cautious and not cause any reason for rumors or accusations. This would not help the professor, especially a new one. Also, the book brings up a good point related to privacy. It would be hard to ensure privacy in a coffee shop or other venue. I again would not need with students outside of the office and outside of business hours.
Plagiarism - In many ways, I feel plagiarism is a sign of disrespect. Granted, there could be many reasons why a student chose to plagiarize, but if a student had respect for the professor, I do not feel they would plagiarize. I would like to think that a college student should have a decent idea of what is plagiarism. Am I wrong? I like the tips suggested in the book related to signs or signal's of plagiarise. I like the example in the book related to the professor handling two students turning in the same paper. The professor had to change his decision after discussing the situation with another professor. That professor felt like his authority was lowered after that. I guess I would agree. It would be important to find out right away if the university or department has specific ways to handle these types of situation. What is NDSU's policy on such behavior? When a situation occurs, the professor should discuss the issue with the student, and not just give them a lower score. I have noticed that there are online sites a professor can use to help detect possible plagiarism. One such site is copyrightspot (http://copyrightspot.com/). Another such program is Copyguard (http://www.citypaper.com/news/story.asp?id=11466). Regardless of what software (if any) a professor uses, they still need to discuss the issue with the student and think of plagiarism as a learning opportunity.
Student Complaints - I honestly feel that if someone has enough time on their hands and a little negative energy, they will find fault in anybody. The key issue is if the complaints are persistent. I think students need to understand chain of command and know where they can go if they disagree with a professor. I liked the suggestion in the book related if they threaten to go to the professor (if you are a TA) or the department head, encourage them to do so. Often times, this will not take place, and the student will focus on their studies. It would also be important that the professor and the department head are on the same page so the student does not manipulate a situation.
Letters of Recommendations - I liked this section in the book because I have had issues with this in the past. I enjoy writing letters of recommendations for students who deserve good ones, but what do I do if a average student or poor student asks? I hate this. I have done what the book has said (be honest), and it has cause some hard feelings. Maybe it was what I said to the student. I feel, it is not what you say, but how you say it. In the future, I plan on informing students to be sure to ask right before putting me down as a reference and that not everyone will get a "glowing recommendation". About.com has some excellent sample recommendation letter a faculty member can use. I have not had to write a great deal of recommendations, but will use the site as a guide when needed. The University of Wisconsin-Green Bay also has a nice site for faculty and staff to assist with writing letters of recommendations (http://www.uwgb.edu/careers/Recommendation_Letters.htm).
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